Chapter 148 - 123: The Giant Dragon has Graced Its Protection for a Thousand Years_1
“Teleportation Array, lend it to me.”
Negris quickly turned to look at Naeli.
Naeli said without hesitation, “Feel free to use it, what’s mine is yours.”
Ange activated the teleportation array, the team on the other side had been well-prepared and began to be teleported over. The first to arrive was the Purple Corpse, followed by a batch of Titans toting hoes and pitchforks.
Naeli was flabbergasted, “These… are these Titans? Can I smell the scent of Thunder? Thunder Titans?”
“Ah, yes, um… yeah.” Negris stuttered, unsure of how to respond. If the true Thunder Titans knew that Ange was using their mixed-blood kind as farmers, it was unclear what their reaction would be, but they’d probably not be happy.
As soon as Purple Corpse exited the Teleportation Array, it spotted Lightning standing in the distance and excitedly cried out, “Ohoho! Little horse, I finally see you. Where have you been? I missed you to death.”
It was calling out anxiously whilst charging towards Lightning.
Lightning turned tail and ran. It had stayed far away to watch with caution for this exact reason—this mixed-blood titan completely suppressed all of Lightning’s abilities. It had no advantage against her—the only thing it had was speed.
“Haha, trying to run? Feel the power of my thunder!” With Purple Corpse’s loud proclamation, her foot stomped on the ground, a circle of soil exploded into the air, and a blast of electricity surged up, seeming like a lightning snake. It coursed up her leg and finally disappeared into her body.
With every step, an electrical light exploded from the ground. Purple Corpse ran at full speed, like stepping on a calm sea — leaving in her wake a series of dirt pillars that exploded into the air. Her entire body left afterimages as she quickly approached Lightning.
“Huh? The power of Thunder? Has Purple Corpse awakened her Bloodline Power?” Negris exclaimed in surprise.
The second one to follow was the Great Shaman who replied, “Yes, Purple Corpse has awakened her bloodline power. Many of our young ones share signs of bloodline awakening as well. We are truly grateful to you, God of Knowledge. And we’re grateful to Lord Ange.”
“Just thank me is enough. No need to thank him, as you all are his devotees. That’s how it should be,” Negris said.
“Um…hahaha, the sun is so strong here.” How was the Great Shaman supposed to respond? If he said it was deserved, it would be disrespectful to God. If he said it wasn’t deserved, it would be a snub to Negris.
Lightning, straining all its might, felt the vibrations behind it growing ever closer in disbelief: “She’s faster than me?”
Just as this thought crossed its mind, a large hand grabbed its tail. To prevent its tail from snapping, it had to slow down.
Lightning was then engulfed in a big hug, cradled and stroked on its head and temples. There was the sound of hearty laughter, “Haha! Little horse, little horse, I’ve missed you so much.”
Lightning struggled, irritated, “I hadn’t got a chance to activate my speed boost in time, otherwise I would have escaped already. How are you faster than me?”
Purple Corpse flexed her bicep, and small electric sparks erupted, “Big sister awakened her bloodline power. I’ll show you later.”
“Puh-leeze, who’s your… ” Lightning automatically wanted to retort, but its words were cut off when Purple Corpse gave it a bear hug, nuzzling and stroking it like a panda. No words could escape.
Lightning was now unable to fight back or even run away—it couldn’t even vent its frustration with words, so it just gave up, a look of sheer despair in its eyes.
Twenty-four Purple Skeleton Titans were teleported over, followed by the slightly smaller-sized people such as Lisa, Feilin, Anna, and Lan.
Besides these, Ange had also transported all the armored swordsmen and shield bearers from the Resting Camp. The sight of all these iron-clad warriors standing in front of everyone was met with amazement.
Sofia envied them to the point of salivation. She hadn’t been envious when Ange summoned a group of Titans but bringing out a dozen or so iron-clad warriors made her extremely envious—because the desert was sorely lacking in iron. Not to mention heavy iron armor that weighed a few dozen pounds, even a rusty needle or a kitchen knife was considered a scarce commodity in the desert.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford them, but the prices were a hundred times what they were worth. Sofia couldn’t bear to make the purchase.
Moreover, they weren’t practical. Faced with desert bandits, who moved as swiftly as the wind, such heavy armor was only going to slow them down. Even so, Sofia was still jealous—not because they were practical for her to buy, but because they weren’t.
Feeling a bit angry, he pulled out a horn and blew into it with all his might.
Moo——Moo——Moo——, a very low and distant sound echoed out, similar to the bellowing of a cow.
Negris looked at Naeli in astonishment, questioning, “Why does it sound like a cow bellowing?”
Sofia’s face turned a little red, her breath chaotic. She took a deep breath to calm herself before continuing to blow the horn.
Naeli blushed a bit, sheepishly explaining, “It’s not a cow bellowing, it’s the dragon song, like this, Moo——Moo——”
Naeli opened her big mouth, slowly modulating her breath and making a sound. Indeed, when it was exceptionally low, it sounded exactly like the dragon song.
“Humans don’t have enough breath to produce the dragon song, and a low sound can travel farther, so it was changed to this. Nevermind, I’ll do it.”
Naeli tilted her neck back and let out a long, clear sound. A dragon song streamed from her mouth and it even rubbed against the air, producing circles of blue ripples.
The dragon song echoed between heaven and earth, reaching places tens of kilometers away.
Tens of kilometers away, in the hollow of a sand dune, a group of a thousand winged knights were already prepared for battle.
They had two horses each, one for riding and the other for carrying equipment. The equipment they were carrying had already been unpacked.
It was a peculiar piece of equipment, much like a cylinder, about two and a half meters long, with an opening at the front. Knights could crawl into the cylinder through this opening, leaving only their heads exposed.
A crossbow was fitted at the front of the cylinder, and the string extended into the cylinder. Knights could directly wind the string inside the cylinder, due to space constraints, each cylinder only had three arrows. Once these three arrows were shot, the knight would lose their offensive capability.
Several tracks were pulled out and assembled. Soon, thirty tracks leading towards the sky appeared on the ground. Cylinders were placed on the tracks, ready for action.
Just then, the dragon song could be heard in the distance. Iron Leyce, who was sitting under a sunshade suddenly stood up, drew his sword, and declared:
“The Giant Dragon has arrived! Winged Knights, your moment to prove yourselves has arrived. Let dragon’s blood burnish your feats into your wings, let glory accompany your family forever. Dragon-slaying Knights, take flight!”
The cylinders on the tracks, driven by the horses, made the bowstrings start to tighten. When the strings were at their tightest, the spring clasp was released, and the cylinder was shot out.
As the cylinder left the track, two iron plates on top sprung open at a triangle. Between the two iron bars was a membrane-like fabric that formed wings. Propelled by the launch and the wind, the cylinder immediately took flight.
The knights stepped hard on the pedal inside the cylinder. The flywheel rotated, activating the wind array at the bottom. A robust wind blasted out of the back of the cylinder, pushing the winged cylinder to fly higher.
From the thirty tracks, winged knights were launched into the sky at a rate of one per minute. Occasionally, some would fail to take off and crash into the sand. If the cylinder and the knight were damaged, they were dragged aside, and the wind array inside the cylinder was removed.
If it was not damaged, it would be dragged back onto the track for a second launch.
The most valuable part of the winged cylinder was the wind array. As long as it was not damaged, the winged cylinder was considered salvageable.
The winged knights who had successfully taken off would hover waiting for more of their comrades to join them before setting out together. They were facing the Bronze Giant Dragon, and without numerical superiority, they were essentially on a suicide mission.
With thirty tracks, launching over a thousand winged knights into the sky would take at least half an hour.
At Hope Oasis, the dragon’s long chant had spread to every corner. The robust sand-dwellers grabbed their curved knives, left their tents, led their camels, bid farewell to their wives and children, and gathered in the direction of the dragon song.
They had been blessed by the dragon for thousands of years, and the oasis had been peaceful. Now, it was their time to repay their protector with their blood and lives.